New Arrivals

95 Points - Antonio Galloni

Raen's 2015 Royal St. Robert Cuvée is an exotically beautiful, almost overwhelming wine endowed with superb depth and intensity in all of its dimensions. A burst of ripe red and purplish-hued stone fruits rushes across the palate. Rose petal, lavender, spice, blood orange and spice overtones follow in short order. Ripe and racy, but not at all heavy, the 2015 is a real head-turner. All of the depth of the year comes through, but there is also tremendous aromatic intensity and bright acids to balance things out.

98 Points - James Suckling

This has a perfect nose of blackberry, tar, black pepper, thyme, cloves and rose petal. Full body and firm and very silky and polished tannins. The finish goes on for minutes. Best ever. Great class. 92% carmenere and 8% petit verdot. Drink in 2019 but so gorgeous now.

95 Points - Antonio Galloni 

The 2014 Pinot Noir Royal St. Robert Cuvée (Sonoma Coast) is fabulous. Bright, focused and nuanced, the 2014 offers striking purity and exceptional overall balance. Dark red and purplish berries, mint, lavender, sage, licorice and white flowers are all super-expressive today. The St. Robert Cuvée is the most lifted and airy of the Raen Pinots. The lifted, gracious style is hugely appealing.

Made from original 1969 plantings and 1980 cuttings from the original vines at Yarra Yering. A highly individual style, reflecting its single vineyard origin A little ginger cream spice and texture from barrel maturation and fermentation add layers, depth and intrigue while the fresh line of acidity drives the palate prolonging the fruit flavour.

97 Points - James Halliday

A cabernet sauvignon-dominant blend, with lesser amounts of merlot, malbec and petit verdot. Excellent hue and depth; this is a top-flight No. 1, fully reflecting the excellent vintage; the flavours are bold and luscious, yet the wine never threatens to lose its shape; first there is the multi-variety complexity, second the perfectly balanced ripe tannins. It almost seems superfluous to mention the new French oak, but it, too, helps weld the wine into its utterly coherent whole.

97 Points - James Halliday

A 70/15/10/5% blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, malbec and petit verdot planted in '69, matured for 20 months in 100% new French barriques. Deep crimson-purple, it proclaims its regal birth with the first whiff of the bouquet, the first sip of the palate. Always great, this medium to full-bodied wine pushes past previous vintages with the sheer perfection of its flavour profile, mouthfeel, and, above all else, its balance.

98 Points - James Halliday

A blend of cabernet sauvignon (dominant), merlot, malbec and petit verdot. Fabulous colour, deep crimson; the bouquet is so intense it sets the antennae waving furiously. The palate is an essay. Sheer, unadulterated power; the four components have bonded so symbiotically and synergistically with each other, and the 100% new French oak, it will be a decade at the very least before the wine opens up to display the intricacy of its inner workings. When it does, this wine may emerge as the greatest of the vintage.

98 Points - James Halliday

Shiraz, with a small percentage of mataro, was co-fermented with viognier and marsanne. While the colour is not particularly deep, the fragrance of the wine is exceptional, the intensity of the juicy spray of red fruits on the vibrant palate even more so. This is an iron fist in a velvet glove, the flavours lingering long after the wine has been swallowed. The inheritance of the late Bailey Carrodus is being carefully guarded.

95 Points - James Halliday

No mlf. A semillon-based white Bordeaux style. While already very complex, toasty and full-bodied, its acidity (left intact by the exclusion of mlf) slices through the palate like King Arthur's sword, and giving the illusion of green lemon and herb/green capsicum flavours. Will be fascinating to watch its development.

97 Points - James Halliday

Four clones were planted ‘69, ‘81 and ‘84, making these vines (on average) some of the oldest in Australia. This is in classic Yarra Yering style: rich, powerful and complex, but doesn’t go over the top, its varietal expression plain for all to see, its length exceptional, its longevity likewise.